Lara Fabian

Belgian-born pop singer/songwriter Lara Fabian began singing, dancing, and taking piano lessons at a very young age and began formal music lessons at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels at age eight. During her ten years of study there, Fabian started writing and performing her own songs, which were inspired as much by her classical vocal and music theory training as they were by Barbra Streisand and Queen. After finishing her studies, Fabian moved to Montreal and began her own label and publishing company, Productions Clandestines. Collaborator/producer Rick Allison, an old friend from Brussels, joined her in Montreal and the pair worked steadily on writing and recording songs. In 1991, Fabian's French-language debut album was released in Canada and sold over 100,000 copies in three years. Her consistent touring in Quebec helped bolster her 1994 album Carpe Diem to similar success, which paved the way for 1997's Pure, a two million-selling album in France that spawned the anti-homophobia anthem "La Difference." The live album Fabian released a year later solidified the international buzz around her and she was signed by Sony Music, which released her self-titled, English-language album in 2000. It was a huge success across the globe, reaching number 1 in the US Heatseeker chart and rocketed to the top of the French charts. A Year later she returned to French language for her fifth album, Nue, which documented her tumultuous time during the overwhelming success of her previous album. In 2004 Fabian released her second English record, A Wonderful Life. The album featured a collection of acoustic-pop songs and included “Review My Kisses” -- a track Fabian originally turned down the track for the album. However, after being impressed by LeAnn Rimes' version, she recorded the song herself. Just a year later, Fabian released 9, which for the first time was not produced by long term collaborator Rick Allison. Instead, Jean-Félix Lalanne took the helm, and brought about a distinct change in Fabian’s pop sound and marked her fifth French studio album. The highly anticipated collaboration with pianist Mark Herskowitz, Toutes Les Femmes En Moi, arrived in 2009 and brought together a collection of songs from an array of artists such as Celine Dion and Edith Piaf. 2010 saw the release of compilation Best of Laura Fabian, which includes hit single “I Will Love Again” and her duet with Johnny Hallyday “Requiem Pour un Fou.” ~ Heather Phares & Scott Kerr, Rovi